Driving Mazda's Miata Electric Car

Mazda set the automotive world on its heels in 1989 with the introduction of its 1990 Miata two-seat sports car. With its acclaimed performance and simple attention to what a small sports car should be, the Miata set new standards for a new generation of sports cars to come. Even back then, it was hard not to envision what an electric version would be like. Apparently, this same thing was on the minds of the folks at Mazda, because in early 1995 Green Car editors received a call to take one out for a spin. This experience followed behind-the-wheel time in a hydrogen rotary version of the Miata the year before. Clearly, Mazda was exploring its options. This article is reprinted just as it ran in the March 1995 issue of Green Car Journal to share the editors' perspective on Mazda's early electric vehicle efforts.

MAZDA SHOWS ITS ELECTRIC MIATA IN THE U.S.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED MARCH 1995 Mazda recently displayed an electric version of its MX-5 Miata (the Japanese-market Eunos Roadster) in the U.S. Three of these vehicles have been in fleet testing by Japanese utility Chugoku Electric since 1993.

The electric Miata is equipped with air conditioning and power steering. Energy is stored in 16 nickel-cadmium batteries which raise the vehicle's total weight to 3109 lbs (1410 kg). Range is rated at 112 miles (180 km) at 25 mph (40km/h). Mazda claims a 3.1-second zero to 25 mph (40 km/h) acceleration time and a top speed of 81 mph (130 km/h).

Green Car editors who have driven the electric variant found it workable but not necessarily the best example of an electric vehicle, no doubt due to the substantial weight penalty imposed on this normally-nimble and responsive lightweight roadster by on-board batteries.

This is not unlike the general feeling experienced by Green Car testers during a test drive of Mazda's hydrogen-powered Miata last year. The vehicle did successfully demonstrate the feasibility of running a rotary on hydrogen fuel, but a weighty hydride fuel tank overtaxed the sports car's suspension and led to a bloated feel. The Miata is certainly a popular vehicle in which to showcase these new technologies, but the platform seems less than idea for actual EV or AFV use unless weight penalties can be minimized.

As an interesting aside, EV hobbyists in Japan can build their own electric Miata with the aid of the automaker. A subsidiary of Mazda is offering courses which teach how to replace the standard Miata engine with a 43 hp electric motor, as well as handle all the other necessary tasks in an electric retrofit. Students do nearly all of the work themselves during the six-month course.